[Illustration: TEXAS CLIMBING VETCH NUTTALL’S MILK VETCH]
Nuttall’s Milk Vetch. Turkey Pea (_Hamosa nuttalliana_) is a low plant with few-flowered clusters of small flowers. Although it is inconspicuous, it is so common in yards and fields from Arkansas to Arizona that many people are familiar with it. It blooms in March in the southern part and May and June in the northern part of its range. The narrow pods are slightly curved and nearly an inch long. There are several hamosas with similar pods which are common in the state.
Texas Climbing Vetch (_Vicia texana_) has prostrate branches, 1-2 ft. long, and divided leaves terminating in branched tendrils by which the branches climb over the low plants with which they come in contact. Clusters of the dainty, pale bluish-purple flowers appear in late March and April, the plants forming masses of bloom along roadsides in the sandy regions of the state from Central Texas to Arkansas and Mississippi.
Many of the climbing vetches are planted for cover crops, and one is a garden bean. Many of the garden beans belong to the _Phaseolus_ group, among these being the tepary bean (_Phaseolus acutifolius latifolius_), a native bean from West Texas to Arizona.
Coral-Bean (_Erythrina herbacea_) grows in woods along the coast from Texas to North Carolina. It has erect, herbaceous stems growing from a woody root. The flowers appear before the leaves in spike-like clusters at the ends of the branches. “Erythrina” is from the Greek, meaning “red” and refers to the color of the flowers, which are over an inch long and have the upper petal wrapped around the other petals. The leaves are 6-8 in. long and slender-stalked; they are divided into 3 broad leaflets.
The coral-bean belongs to a group of highly ornamental tropical plants. It does well in cultivation in Southern and Central Texas but is not suitable for a cut-flower, as the flowers soon drop off. The red beans are often used for necklaces. When the pods begin to open, the clusters may be gathered for winter decorations. The coral-tree (_Erythrina cristagalli_) from Brazil is common in cultivation and has broader and showier flowers than the coral-bean.
[Illustration: CRANE’S BILL STORK’S BILL]
